I'm Alive
by tell-me-something-new
Summary: AU Present: Hermione's chosen by Dumbledore to help him stop a certain Tom Riddle from putting lives in danger. Too far from home for comfort, Hermione can't seem to see past Tom's charming smile and trusting attitude. Little does she know, she might just have failed Dumbledore and Tom might just have tricked Hermione for more than one reason. T for now.


******Disclaimer: **I do not own anything J.K. Rowling. Thank you.

******A/N: **Yes, I'm stupid for using Google Translate. But I didn't know where else to go. Forgive me? A big round of applause to my beta Onesmartcookie78 who's stuck through for helping me with a new story. Also, a big thanks to Shiverpass for the graphic.

* * *

"_Everybody's got a story to tell.  
__Everybody's got a wound to be healed.  
__I wanna believe there's beauty here."__  
_

_- "I Need You Now (How Many Times)" by Plumb_

* * *

"___Monsieur _Dumbledore, do you truly think my dear Hermione will be of help?" Asked Madame Maxime to her guest all the way from Hogwarts. Her broken accent was thick, but Dumbledore had known her long enough to understand it well.

"Absolutely, ___Madame_. You said it yourself – she's the best at this school," Dumbledore said as he motioned to the large, glittering entrance hall of Beuxbatons Academy towards where Hermione was said to be sitting, waiting. "And that is exactly what we need."

Madame Maxime, a very tall and proud French woman who was the headmistress of a very important all-girls school of witchcraft and wizardry, slowly nodded her head. She looked at the girl sitting in one of the couches near the fire on the far wall of the empty entry hall. She sat with practiced posture, her limbs perfectly poised; her back was ramrod straight, head held high, a blank expression on her face, eyes trained on the glowing blue fire in the fireplace.

Hermione Granger was one of the brightest witches at Beauxbatons. She was also the best. She was popular and she smiled a lot, on top of her already inherent beauty and intelligence. She was a very good and loyal friend and even her professors enjoyed her company. But if there was only one thing you should know about Hermione, one thing that she was that she shouldn't be, it was that she was naïve. She stood at about 5'5" with wavy brown hair, entrancing brown eyes, and a smile that was contagious. Her laugh was a whole different story.

"Hermione, ___cher, s'il vous plaît venez ____(dear, please come)_," called Madame Maxime.

Hermione smiled and turned her head at the call of her name. She got to her feet immediately and headed Madame Maxime's way.

"___Je voudrais vous présenter mon am i____(I would like to introduce my friend)_, ___Monsieur _Dumbledore."

Hermione curtsied as her eyes met with Dumbledore's. "___Monsieur_Dumbledore," she greeted brightly in her French accent. "It's a pleasure." Her broken accent wasn't as bad as Madame Maxime's, which was a comfort for Dumbledore. It would be easier for her at Hogwarts because of that.

"Hermione, ___cher il ya quelque chose que je dois vous parler de ____(there's something I need to tell you)_," started Madame Maxime.

Hermione looked between Madame Maxime and Dumbledore.

"_Monsieur _Dumbledore___ici a besoin de votre aide (he needs your help)_."

"___Il peut me dire lui-même (he can tell me himself)_," Hermione quickly said to Madame Maxime, a leery look in her eyes.

Madame Maxime looked over to Dumbledore. "She wants you to tell her why you need her."

Dumbledore cleared his throat, his eyes fixing on Hermione carefully. "There is a student at my school who I fear will put the lives of many at stake soon in the future."

Hermione nodded, showing her understanding.

"I need your help to stop him. He's a dangerous student." Hermione saw the serious look in Dumbledore's aged eyes and felt panic bubbling up within her.

"What could I possibly do?" She asked in disbelief. She spared a glance to Madame Maxime and then turned back to Dumbledore. "How could I stop him?" Her eyes shined brightly with a mix of confusion and worry as well as curiosity.

"I need you to keep an eye on him. There's been a...troubling prophecy saying that he's to do something terrible soon. And I need you to stop whatever it is from happening."

Hermione bit her bottom lip, turning to Madame Maxime. "___Mais que dire de ma mère et le père (but what about my mother and father)__?_"

"I'll take care of that," said Madame Maxime.

Hermione turned to Dumbledore. "You expect me to transfer in the middle of the school year?" It didn't make as much sense to Hermione as it should. Shouldn't Dumbledore have come to her earlier?

"I know it's such short notice, but I had no choice," was Dumbledore's reply, in all honesty.

Hermione looked away from the two and huffed a distressed sigh.

* * *

Hermione's nose crinkled up at the sight of Hogwarts. It was a step down from Beauxbatons, but still very large. It looked _old_. A part of her enjoyed the idea of her transfer. New adventures in a whole new, magical place. An ancient one at that, making it even more magical. But still..._it was a step down_.

A half-giant by the name of Hagrid was leading Hermione into the grounds of Hogwarts, going on and on about its history. She would have listened, had she not been too busy worrying about how on earth she was going to be able to do whatever it was she had to do to keep this ___student_from doing the harm Dumbledore has spoken of. She figured she'd read up on whatever Hagrid was speaking of now in a history book of the castle later. In fact, she perked up a little at the thought of reading. With such a large castle, there was a promise of a larger library than what she had to work with at Beuxbatons.

She was walking into what looked to be a courtyard. There were students around her, wearing stuffy-looking sweatshirts and ties, ugly skirts and wretched black shoes. She was already missing her beautiful blue silk uniform from Beauxbatons. Surely this wouldn't take the rest of the school year to fix up.

Hagrid opened the doors to the entrance. "Alrigh' here we are," he said cheerfully. "I can take yeh to Dumbledore's office, but that's all I can help yeh with today."

Hermione nodded her head. "Thank you, Hagrid," she said politely, taking a moment to look around Hogwarts's Entrance Hall before she hurried to keep up with the half-giant.

There were so many hallways and all looked nearly the same. But somehow, she was mentally mapping where Hagrid was taking her. At least she'd know where to find Dumbledore.

Passing students stared at her, but regardless of her insecurities, Hermione kept her head held high and focused on keeping up with Hagrid.

Finally, they came to a big statue. Hermione looked closely. It looked like a gryphon.

"_Chocoballs_," Hagrid said with a sigh.

Hermione's eyebrows furrowed. "Excuse me?"

Just as she had questioned what Hagrid had just said, the statue began moving. She gasped, watching the stairs appear. She glanced at Hagrid, who looked amused with her reaction, then back to the staircase.

He motioned towards the stairs. "On yeh go, Miss Hermione."

Hermione hesitated before she stepped forward.

* * *

The office was grander than Hermione had been expecting. She thought Dumbledore's office would be tight-spaced, stuffy, and dusty. But she found it to be the exact opposite. Books lined the walls and, up ahead, were a few sets of steps, the destination the large desk at which Dumbledore was currently sitting. Beside him was a Phoenix – Hermione had read about them and was instantly thrilled to finally see one in person.

"Ah, Miss Granger, I was wondering when I'd be seeing you today."

Hermione cleared her throat, not sure where she should go at the moment. But Dumbledore soon gently waved her over. She walked up the stairs and then to his desk, looking down at him.

"I apologize, Professor, but there were problems with the tr-"

"I know very well why you've arrived later than expected. It isn't your fault." Dumbledore got to his feet and rounded the desk quietly.

"Before I can allow you to meet the student, Tom Riddle, or any student for that matter, we'll need to get you Sorted."

"Sorted?"

And then it clicked in. Hermione had heard rumors about Hogwarts, how there were four different houses. _Cliques_, some at Beauxbatons would say.

"Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. Four completely different families, my dear. You will fit into one of them. I will explain them to you after."

Hermione watched as Dumbledore walked over to a part of the bookshelves where an old-looking hat sat. What did Dumbledore need with a hat like that?

Without questioning, Hermione furrowed her eyebrows as Dumbledore came over and sat the hat on her head. She opened her mouth, about to question Dumbledore when the hat spoke.

_"____Ah, a transfer from Beauxbatons, I see. Very bold, very bold indeed. Four houses, with their own acquired traits, but where do you fit best?__" _The voice sounded aged, but wise and strong. Was he a Sorting Hat? There were so many questions. _"____You are a curious female who seeks more knowledge than I've ever seen in the minds of the girls here at Hogwarts. A hero back at your old school, I see. You're very brave which makes it easy to say you belong in...____Ravenclaw__!_"

Dumbledore smiled softly at Hermione, taking the Hat off.

"She will do great things, Dumbledore. Some foolish, some naïve, but mostly great..." the Hat said.

"I'm sure she will. That is why she's here," Dumbledore replied as he walked back and placed the Hat where he had gotten it from. "I had hoped you would be placed in the same house as Tom. Nonetheless, Ravenclaw is a good place to be," Dumbledore explained as he sat back down at his desk.

"What house is he in?" Hermione questioned.

"Slytherin, a house of ambition, cunning and resourcefulness. Gryffindor is for the courageous, chivalrous and determined. Ravenclaw for the wise, the witty and the creative. Lastly, there's Hufflepuff for the patient, kind and loyal students."

Hermione nodded, her puzzlement cleared up.

"I trust you've bought everything you'll need?"

"___Oui (yes)__, _I have. It was difficult to find, but with the help of my parents I found everything on the list you had sent to me."

"I'm glad to hear that, Miss Granger. You have your class schedule as well?"

"The schedule you had sent with my supplies list? ___Oui__._"

"You wanted to speak with me, Professor?" came a smooth, English voice from behind Hermione.

She immediately turned her head around, her eyes caught on light green eyes. ___Who was this man_?

"Ah, Tom, I'm glad you came. Hermione, I'd like you to meet the Slytherin prefect, Tom Riddle. He has been selected to show you around the grounds. He is also available to help you with anything you need for the first weeks of your time here."

Hermione looked at Dumbledore and back at Tom, who flashed her a warm, friendly smile. "Miss Granger, welcome to Hogwarts," he said smoothly, walking over and taking her right hand. She was about to pull away when he pressed a chaste kiss on the back of her palm.

"Thank you," Hermione said. What was so disquieting about Tom to Dumbledore? He seemed well-mannered and a friendly person. He didn't seem capable of being evil, what with his positively angelic features. And that's saying something coming from Hermione, who had always been keen on reading people thoroughly.

"Miss Granger has transferred from France," Dumbledore informed the Slytherin aptly.

The eye contact broke and Tom let go of Hermione's hand, his head turning to look at Dumbledore. He looked almost as if he respected Dumbledore. "Beauxbatons?" he questioned. He turned his head to Hermione and smiled again. "Whatever for?"

Hermione's brain reminded her as to what she had been ordered to say. "My parents found better work here in England," she explained.

Tom nodded gently. "That is quite understandable." He didn't even question what that work would be.

"As of tonight, show her to her common room. She has been sorted in into Ravenclaw. Make sure she's shown to Ravenclaw's prefect, Tom."

Tom nodded his head in confirmation. "Of course, Professor." He motioned towards the exit. "This way, Miss Granger." He flashed a smiled. If Hermione wasn't so assuming, she would have noticed the slyness of a smooth smirk slipping through his act, and the flash of darkness in his green eyes.


End file.
